Orthopedic knee braces are typically worn either to support a healthy knee joint and prevent injury, or to stabilize a knee joint that has been destabilized by an injury or other condition. These braces generally include rigid structural components that support or stabilize the knee joint. The rigid structural components are dynamically linked together by one or more hinges that enable controlled pivotal movement of the knee joint during user activity or rehabilitative therapy. The brace is positioned on the leg such that the hinges traverse the knee joint, while the rigid components are secured to the leg above and below the knee joint.
Osteoarthritis is a degenerative disease that destabilizes the knee joint. The disease commonly results from aging, knee joint overuse, or injury. A person afflicted with osteoarthritis suffers chronic pain when his or her knee joint is statically or dynamically loaded. The pain is caused by an unbalanced loading on the knee joint. The unbalanced loading closes a compartment between the condyles of the femur and tibia, and when these condyles contact one another, their contacting surfaces develop painful abrasions.
Wearing an orthopedic knee brace on the affected leg is one common noninvasive method of treating osteoarthritis pain. These braces apply a force to a medial or lateral side of the knee in order to unload the affected compartment of the knee joint and eliminate contact between the femur and tibia. U.S. Pat. No. 5,277,698 discloses an example of such a brace. This brace applies a force to the knee on that side of the knee remote from the compartment having osteoarthritis as the knee moves to extension. Preferably, the force is applied at a point about 10° to 15° posterior of the normal axis of rotation of the knee.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,586,970 discloses a knee brace having a medial condyle pad and a lateral condyle pad that are each independently adjustable in side-to-side motion. This independent adjustment permits either medial condyle pad or lateral condyle pad to have variable pressure with respect to a user's knee.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,807,294 discloses a hinge assembly for an orthopedic knee brace that pivotally couples an upper arm and a lower arm. The hinge assembly includes a pad assembly a hinge and upper and lower adjustment members enabling adjustment of the normal force applied by the hinge assembly to the knee joint for the treatment of osteoarthritis. The hinge includes an end of the upper arm, an end of the lower arm, outer and inner hinge plates positioned on opposite sides of the ends, and upper and lower hinge fasteners. The upper and lower hinge fasteners each have a bore therethrough that is internally threaded. The upper hinge fastener rotatably connects the end of the upper arm to the outer and inner hinge plates, and the lower hinge fastener rotatably connects the end of the lower arm to the outer and inner hinge plates. The upper adjustment member has external threads that are received by the internal threads of the upper hinge fastener to telescopically couple the upper adjustment member to the upper hinge fastener. The lower adjustment member likewise has external threads that are received by the internal threads of the lower hinge fastener to telescopically couple the lower adjustment member to the lower hinge fastener. Both the upper and lower adjustment members have ends that are substantially fixedly coupled to the pad holder. As a result, the pad assembly is selectively displaceable toward or away from the hinge when the user selectively displaces the upper and lower adjustment members through the upper and lower bores of the upper and lower hinge fasteners.
However, the braces of the foregoing are difficult to use and not as precisely adjustable as may be desired. For example, the adjustment members often include screws, bolts, and/or other fasteners which are adjusted individually, often requiring the use of tools or more than one hand. Accordingly, improvements in bracing loading mechanisms are needed.